Philly: Member Of Fattah's Inner Circle Pleads Guilty
One day after coasting to reelection, U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah faced deepening legal problems with the guilty plea of a second member of his inner circle.
Political consultant Thomas Lindenfeld, 59, of Washington, pleaded Wednesday to a count of wire fraud for taking part in schemes that prosecutors say Fattah engineered to siphon off federal money to finance his losing bid for Philadelphia mayor in 2007.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Gibson said the government would seek a more lenient sentence for Lindenfeld because he was cooperating.
A spokeswoman for Lindenfeld said he was remorseful.
"Tom takes full responsibility for his actions, and regrets participating in illegal activity," the spokeswoman said. "He has and is cooperating fully with the government."
In the initial scam, prosecutors contend, Fattah illegally borrowed $1 million from a donor for the 2007 race - Alfred Lord, a former chief executive of the massive Sallie Mae lending agency. The money went to buy ads, which were handled by Lindenfeld.
Read the full story: www.philly.com
Follow Larry Elder on Twitter
"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook
